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How To Be a Great Speaker:

Tips for Women to Work Towards a Promotion

January 11, 2017

The first tip is to not see asking for a promotion as YOU being bitchy or difficult, especially when positioning yourself for advancement. See it as an opportunity to highlight your accomplishments and position the company for future success instead.

Often times I hear women say, “I thought they would have given me a promotion by now.” Well, no one is your best advocate besides you. Companies have hundreds, sometimes thousands of employees and their focus – when it comes to promotions – is on the people who are ASKING for the promotion.

If you set expectations on the front end of the year, then great! That’s the time to revisit what you were asked by your supervisor to accomplish – and then review your success vs. the company’s ask of you. If you did not set this baseline, this is a good opportunity to go in and establish one.

Someone will be promoted or get the position you want. If you want that person to be you, you need to prepare. Do your homework on the position and pinpoint why you are the right fit. Treat this as a job interview and go in with examples of your work and show the alignment between your skill set, track record and what the company is looking for in the (new) position.

In order to get ahead, you need to have a plan to get there and work that plan. There is nothing wrong with ambition in the workplace, especially if it is backed up by a great work ethic, can do team attitude and results.

Be a cheerleader of others success and be sure to highlight and praise them. When you are an advocate for others you build an arsenal of advocates for you. You never know who will be tapped to get feedback on your current performance and you want the team to be in your corner.

Don’t spend your time at work gossiping or conspiring for the promotion. Work your plan at home and when you’re in the office focus on delivering results and supporting your team. Everyone likes a positive team player that delivers solutions, not someone who complains and creates problems.

Speak up in meetings and contribute your opinion even when it is different. You are on the team for a reason and you want others to get to know you and see your value. Be your own PR firm at work by verbally sharing your insights and perspective.

Amass client feedback and recommendations of your work. When the time is right you can introduce this feedback during the interview process for a promotion. Having others praise you in writing is difficult to challenge.

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